Billionaire Samsung heir to walk free after Seoul court cuts short and suspends five-year jail term in bribery case.

A South Korean appeals court has freed Samsung Group heir Lee Jae-yong and reduced his five-year jail term, as it dismissed a number of charges against him in a corruption scandal.

Lee, the vice chairman of Samsung Electronics, was handed a suspended sentence of 2.5 years by the Seoul High Court on Monday after nearly a year in detention, South Korea's Yonhap news agency reported.

The billionaire was convicted in August last year of bribing the country's then President Park Guen-hye with $8.2m in return for government backing of a business merger.

The 49-year-old was also found guilty of embezzlement, hiding assets overseas, concealing profit from criminal acts and perjury.

The case led to months of mass protests and Park's eventual impeachment in December 2016.

Prosecutors had wanted Lee to serve a 12-year jail term.

Lee's lawyer expressed his "respect for the court's courage and wisdom to give a not guilty verdict of key charges."

However, both the prosecutors and Lee, who denies the allegations, have appealed Monday's ruling.

Under South Korean law, sentences of more than three years cannot be suspended.